


Aftermath

by EyesOfHorus82



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Depression, Din Djarin Whump, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode Fix-it, Healing, Hurt Din Djarin, Hurt/Comfort, I can't leave the finale like that, Jedi Luke Skywalker, Protective Grogu | Baby Yoda, Protectiveness, Sad Grogu | Baby Yoda, Season 2, Short Story, Star Wars - Freeform, the mandalorian - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:29:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 17,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28169274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EyesOfHorus82/pseuds/EyesOfHorus82
Summary: After Bo-Katan ambushed Din for the Darksaber, Luke Skywalker takes him with him to the Jedi Temple to save his life.Living among the Younglings and their master gives him the opporturnity to be trained in lightsaber combat and to raise his son, like he always wanted to do.
Comments: 70
Kudos: 280





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Omg the second new story withing 24 hours. As much as the final left me as an emotional wreckage, it also inspired me in so many way, how the story could continue. And I wouldn't be me if I wouldn't add some whump, so be prepared. And of course I couldn't leave it like the way it ended. This will only be a small story, so please don't expect more than 5 chapters. I hope you enjoy.

Aftermath

This was the last time Din looked into these huge brown eyes. After the elevator doors closed, his stomach seemed to drop. He tried to blink away the tears in his eyes, but he failed miserably. Din looked down at his feet and took a deep breath, his helmet was still discarded on the floor. Slowly, he bent down and picked it up again. The beskar seemed to have become heavier than before and he didn’t have the urge to put it on again. It was pointless.

Actually he had never considered what his life would be if he would give him to the jedi. He had always repressed that thought and now it all came crashing down on him. Slowly, he turned around, looking at the others, seeing their reaction. Four pairs of eyes were staring at him, their expressions hard to read. Cara was the first, who went to his side, dropping her gun and putting a comforting hand on his shoulders. Din winced by the contact and looked at her. This was the first time, she looked into his eyes and she really felt his pain in his glance, he just looked defeated, empty.

But suddenly, Bo-Katan spoke up and broke the thick tension. “I’m really sorry for your loss, Mando, but there’s one issue, we need to sort out.” she stated dryly and looked at the Darksaber, which was attached to Din's belt. Cara and Fennec looked at her in disbelief. “You are so compassionate…” the former shock trooper hissed and gritted her teeth. “Mourning over him, won’t bring him back, we need to set things clear.” the female Mandalorian snapped back. “If you dare to harm him now, I’ll kill you.” Cara growled and stood in front of Din, who was still like paralized. Fennec mirrored her movement, in order to protect him if necessary. 

Bo-Katan’s eyes widened and she noticed Koska was preparing for a fight. Suddenly, they heard a loud laugh. After all that happened, they seemed to have forgotten, Gideon was still sitting on the floor, highly amused by this conflict. “Mandalorians have always been cruel savages, only focusing on their own purposes.” Gideon laughed at the female mandalorian. Her expression hardened. “I won’t let you fool me, so shut up.” she hissed. “I know, you’d do anything to retrieve it. Now it’s your chance.” the Moff whispered, Cara and Fennec spread out, ready to shoot him. 

Gideon and Bo-Katan exchanged glances. “He means nothing to you. He’s one of the last childs of the watch, your dark past.” Gideon teased her. Bo-Katan grabbed her gun and aimed right between his eyes. “Think about it. Killing me won’t bring your beloved saber back.” the ISB Officer whispered with an evil grin on his face. The female mandalorian tightened her grip on her blaster. Gideon watched her intensely as he noticed some struggle in her eyes. He knew he was successful. The following seconds felt like slow motion. 

Bo-Katan turned away from Gideon and fired. Two shots hit Din in the stomach, the third on his cowl. He only was able to cover his head with his vambraces, but Bo-Katan kept shooting at him. Although the beskar deflected most of the shots, a few found their way into Din’s body. “Noooo!” Cara screamed in horror and fired at the female Mandalorian, who dodged her shots at first. But Fennec sprang into action, didn’t miss her aim and shot her right in the head. Koska stood there, her jaw dropped. “Don’t even think about it.” Fennec hissed and aimed at her until she dropped her weapon and raised her arms in defeat. 

Now, Cara turned to Gideon, who was laughing loudly. This was exactly, what he wanted to happen. The rebel trooper knew she couldn’t just kill him despite as much as she wanted it to do, so she just knocked him down. After that, her ears picked up Din’s laboured breathing. She had no idea how he managed to prop himself on the hologram table, but as soon as she rushed at him, his knees buckled and he collapsed on the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

“Din, nooo!” Cara screamed in horror and dropped on her knees beside him. His eyes were scrunched shut as he wrapped his arm around his middle, trying to keep the seeping vital fluid inside him. Fennec just stood there, frozen in shock. They knew there wouldn’t be a med bay on this light cruiser. “Din, stay with me!” the rebel trooper yelled as she noticed, he was getting weaker. “Cara…. I’m not…. gonna make it….. Maybe it’s for… the best….” Din whispered, accepting his fate. 

“No, you won’t quit on me.” she replied and grabbed her small med pack from her belt. But it only contained a few bandages, gauze and a painkiller, nothing to treat multiple shot wounds. But she tried it anyway and packed the holes in Din’s stomach, which were leaking the most blood. The pain increased as she touched the wound and he writhed on the floor. Dark spots started to dance in front of his eyes, as his body slowly started to shut down. 

“Grogu, I’m glad you’re safe buddy” Din thought as his consciousness gradually slipped. Cara noticed, his body started to get limp. “Din, no! Stay with me! Please!” she now cried and cupped his cheek. Fennec tapped her vambrace. “Boba, we need help, Mando got shot.” she explained. A second after, she received a reply. “Copy that, I’m coming.” 

But as much as Cara hated to admit, she said, “He won’t make it. He needs help now.” Fennec acknowledged that and dropped on her knees as well. It hurt her to see Cara crying over her unconscious friend. The way she stroked his hair and cheek made her tear up a bit. “I can’t do anything, I’m so sorry.” the rebel trooper wept and put her forehead on Din’s, feeling his pulse was getting weaker. 

§

Grogu felt really weird, although he knew he could trust the Jedi, he missed Din already. But this was his destiny, was it? Small tears formed in his eyes and Luke instantly felt his distress. “Nah, don’t cry little one. You’ll meet him again, but you need training. I promise, I’ll take good care of you.” Luke said cheerfully, but it didn’t make things better for the child. He didn’t doubt the Jedi would take good care of him, but he doubted he would experience that kind of paternal love Din provided. 

His ears dipped as they walked closer to the X-Wing. R2D2 already had let itself get picked up from the ship. The windshield opened slowly as Grogu suddenly felt a massive disturbance of the force. His eyes widened in horror as images of Din lying bleeding on the floor popped up in front of his inner eye. The little one panicked and tried to wiggle out of Luke’s grasp. But Skywalker felt that disturbance too and both exchanged worried glances. The Jedi instantly noticed the fear and panic in Grogu’s eyes and he knew something horrible had just happened. 

Grogu squeaked and pointed back at their way, where they came from. “Alright, let’s check out what happened.” Luke said with a stern voice and started to run. They went back to the elevator and as soon as they were on the right floor, they already heard some distressed voices. Grogu’s heartbeat picked up pace as they edged closer to the hatch of the bridge. And as soon as the door opened, the kid’s heart skipped some beats as he saw Din lying on the floor in a pool of blood. 

Luke wasted no time and dropped beside them. “What happened here?” he asked and looked at Cara’s wet eyes. “He was shot, some people just took advantage of his devastated situation and just shot him to retrieve a stupid weapon.” she cried and made room for Luke and Grogu. The little one wasted no time and went to Din’s stomach, putting his tiny hands on him. Luke watched him focussing. “Is he able to force heal? Not every force sensitive is capable of doing that. I’m not for example.” Luke said and looked to Cara, who said, “Yes, he healed a friend of mine a few months ago, he saved his life, but it makes him so sleepy.” 

Grogu started to tremble and he tried so hard to heal Din’s wound, but since he was still drained by Gideon’s experiments, he only was able to reduce the bleeding. Wavering, he stumbled back and was caught by Luke. “Easy, little guy.” he said, looking at Djarins wounds. Luke threw a glance at Grogu. “He’s still not healed completely, he needs a healer.” the Jedi said and pulled Din into a sitting position, slipping his hands under his armpits. “What are you doing?” Cara asked, confused. “I’ll take him with me. To my Jedi temple, there’s someone who can help him. But we have to be quick. Can you wrap this bandage around his belly?” Luke asked, still holding the unconscious mandalorian. The rebel trooper nodded and unpacked the bandage. She slipped it around Din’s stomach and tied a knot. 

“I’m gonna help carrying him.” Cara said and together with Luke, they pulled Din up. The mandalorian groaned in pain, opening his eyes a bit. “Is… is this… a dream?” he whispered as he saw Grogu looking at him. “Easy, Din. You are badly hurt. Luke is getting you to a healer.” Cara said and cupped his cheek. His eyes closed again, but he muttered. “Why…. I don’t have…. a reason to ….. carry on…” Luke and Cara exchanged worried glances. The Jedi sighed, now he knew, it would have been a big mistake to separate Grogu and Din. “Don’t worry, he’s right here…” the Jedi said and they made their way to the X-Wing.


	3. Chapter 3

It took awhile for them to get Din into the ship. Luke had to shift his seat in the front so Din would fit behind him and they had to be careful, not to hurt the mandalorian even more. “I hope this is gonna work.” Cara said, looking at Din. “Don’t worry, I’m doing the best I can to save him. But we need to hurry.” Luke said and draped a blanket over the shivering Mandalorian. Cara nodded and gave him Din’s helmet. “He’ll need it when he’s ready to accept it back. He just broke his Creed for that little guy.” the shock trooper explained and Luke nodded. Grogu was so confused and scared. He sat on Din’s lap and watched over him. 

Luke started the X-Wing’s engines. “Alright, let’s go.” the Jedi said, now he sounded a little stressed as he looked into Din’s pale face. He hadn’t woken up since they brought him here. “Grogu, take his wrist and try to feel his pulse. You need to monitor that until we arrive, okay?” Skywalker said and watched the little one picking up Din’s hand. He pulled the glove off and put his tiny hands on his bare wrist.

The Jedi checked what he was doing. “Can you feel his heartbeat? Good, keep monitoring it. If something’s wrong I’ll be there.” he said and Grogu nodded. The ship hovered above the ground and Cara nodded at the Jedi to say goodbye. But her heart was heavy, is she going to see Din and Grogu again? The shock trooper sighed and pushed that thought away for now, she had other things to worry about now. After the X-Wing was out of the hangar, Luke told R2D2 to set the course back home. 

They made the jump into hyperspace and Luke turned to his back seat, where Grogu still was holding Din’s wrist. “Grogu, I feel now how much you love him. But don’t worry, he’ll be alright. I’ve never met a youngling, who was so attached to someone like you to him.” Luke said and hesitated for a moment. He had heard Grogu’s call from the seeing stone, but there was not the confidence to actually find someone. He did what he was told to do. 

The Jedi got lost in his thoughts and concerns about his new student. But suddenly, he heard the mandalorian groaning. Luke turned around to see his eyes were opening slowly. Din looked around and started to panic. “Easy, Mando. You are safe, I’m going to get you someone, who can help you.” Skywalker said and put his hand on Din’s, giving him a reassuring squeeze. “W-Where…. am…..I?” he whispered weakly and scrunched his eyes shut again, even talking seemed to drain him. “Shhh it’s alright. You are on my ship. Grogu’s taking care of you, we’ll arrive soon, just hold on….” Luke paused and looked down to the child, who connected to him with his mind. “Din… Din Djarin?” 

“H-How… do… you know….”? Din whispered and opened his eyes again. “Grogu, just told me. I’m Luke Skywalker…..” the Jedi said, but the mandalorian just closed his eyes again and lost consciousness. Luke’s eyes widened for a second and he looked at the child, who still held Din’s wrist and he confirmed the mandalorians heart was still beating. “Okay, we really need to hurry,” Skywalker said as he noticed the blood stains on Din’s blanket. Grogu’s ears dropped and he snuggled his cheek on the Mandalorians cold hand. 

After one hour, they slowly approached the Jedi Temple. The X-Wing softly touched down on the grass and a few of Luke’s students came to welcome him back. “Master Luke, it's great to see you.” a young boy with brown hair and a light brown Jedi robe said, as Skywalker opened the windshield. But they quickly got their master’s stern expression. “Students, I need you to get a gurney, I have someone, who’s badly injured with me.” Luke ordered, but he held back the boy with brown hair. “Master Luke?” he questioned. “Riley, I need you to get my sister…. She’s his only hope” the Jedi said and threw a worried glance at Din Djarin.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, I think this fic is going to be longer as I intended to 😅  
> Anyway, I watched the Last Samurai again and I somehow love the idea of Luke's Jedi Temple looking like an Japanese Shrine 😏😅

The boy ran ahead while the other kids carefully put Din on the gurney. Luke noticed his face was becoming paler and paler. "Come on, let's take him to the temple" the jedi ordered and cautiously, they carried the injured mandalorian into the large building in front of the. 

The entrance hall had a high ceiling and the floor was made of dark, matte wood. Everything was kept minimalistic and bold. Luke led them into another room where a few kids were sitting in a circle around a woman, who was reading to them. 

She was beautiful, dressed in cream white, delicate clothes, her eyes were dark brown, the same as her hair, which was accurately curled into big buns on each side of her head. Leia lowered her book as they brought Din into the room. “Leia, I need your help.” Luke called and gestured to the kids to leave the room. The woman’s eyes widened as she saw the blood covered amor clad man lying limply in front of her.

“Luke, who is he? What happened?” she asked confused and came closer. She noticed the little green kid, who was standing beside the mandalorians head, gently caressing his face, with lowered ears. Leia looked at Luke.”Is he?” she asked, but the Jedi shook his head. “No, this is the kid, who called me from the seeing stone. And this is his father, he got hurt really badly when we were about to leave. Leia, you need to help him. You’re the only one, who is able to manage the force healing.” Skywalker explained urgently. 

“But Luke….. you know, my training isn’t finished. I can’t….” she said and bit her lip, her glance fell on the injured man and the child in front of her and she sensed a strong bond between them. “Leia, you have to try….. he’s his father.” Luke explained and Grogu’s ears perked up. The woman sighed and put her hand on Din’s. “He’s very weak, almost on the bridge to another galaxy, Luke. I will try, but I can’t promise to save him.” she said finally and started to remove the blood stained beskar and clothes. 

Everyone gasped as she revealed the cluster of shot wounds on Din’s stomach.Grogu closed his eyes and looked away, his hopes were fading. Luke and Leia also exchanged glances. Din’s skin was almost white as a bed sheet, his breathing almost not visible anymore. There was so much blood on his torso, some already dried and some fresh from the source. Suddenly, Din opened his eyes, the only thing he saw right now was Grogu. “I…. guess this is goodbye.” he breathed, almost beyond comprehension. 

Grogu’s eyes teared up as he gently stroked Din’s cheek. The mandalorian put a weak smile on, but before he was able to say something, his eyes shut and he went limp. Quickly, the woman in white put her slender fingers on the Mandalorians body and closed her eyes. She felt his pain, but there was also mentally pain, Leia sensed this man was grieving a current loss, which made her feel compassionate about him. 

The silence and tension was almost touchable. Grogu watched her focusing, he knew this procedure from his own abilities. But he also sensed, she may be too weak to heal his father. His glance went back on Din’s face, whose features were still and dead. The kid dropped on his knees and snuggled his head on his stubbly cheek, but there was no response. Luke watched Leia trying her best to heal those nasty wounds, some of them slowly closed, but the Jedi feared it wouldn't be enough. Although his sister was a powerful force sensitive, she had never called herself a Jedi. She was strong, but her powers weren’t fully developed. And with the birth of her son, they were fading again. 

Leia’s hands started to tremble as she reached her limits. But Din’s deepest wounds weren’t fully healed yet and suddenly, they noticed his chest wasn’t moving anymore, it seemed he had drawn his last breath. “No…. Luke, I can’t. I’m sorry.” she said and put her hands down on her lap. Grogu let out a scream of pain, tears rolled down his face as he felt Din was fading. Luke closed his eyes, he really had thought he could save the mandalorian. 

Grogu pressed himself harder on Din’s body and cried. “It’s over little one, he’s gone. I’m so sorry.” Luke said softly and put his hand on the kids back. But the child just shrugged him off. Leia looked at the child and sobbed, it was too much for a young mother to see a child mourning for his deceased father. Grogu then took a deep breath and went to Din’s stomach. Gently, he put his three fingered fingers on his cold skin and focused. He knew, he had to try it again or Din would be lost forever. Luke watched his student intensely as he tried and he noticed the wounds actually were closing gradually. 

But then, Grogu stopped, briefly before he lost consciousness. Grief was written all over the kid's face as he sunk down on the mandalorians bare skin. It was over, he was too weak to save him. Leia was tearing up as she watched the heartbreaking scene. She took a deep breath and put her hands back on Din. “Come on, let’s try again. Together.” she whispered softly and Grogu nodded. Now, both put their hands on Din’s stomach and after the last shot wound was closed, they sank down in exhaustion. 

Luke put his not gloved hand on Din’s chest, feeling his breathing was getting stronger again. “You did it.” the Jedi mumbled and looked into two tired but happy faces. Luke got up and left the room, while Leia and Grogu started to get to know each other. “Hey, there little one…” she said softly and took his hand. The woman closed her eyes as Grogu shared his mind with her. A few minutes later, Skywalker returned with a bowl of water and a cloth. Carefully, he wiped the blood from Din’s body. Suddenly, they heard him groaning. 

“Din? Din it’s okay, you are safe.” the Jedi said and put his hand on the mandalorians shoulder to reassure him. But Mando just turned his head to the side and fell asleep again. “Let him rest, he had lost a lot of blood. It’s going to take a few days for him. I’m going to prepare a sleeping quarter for him.” the Jedi said as Grogu again, started to stroke his fathers face. Luke and Leia exchanged glances again with a little worry this time. 

A few hours later, Din hadn’t woken up yet. He and Grogu were brought into a private room with a comfortable bed. It was late at night when Luke decided to look after his new student. Slowly he opened the door and found him sitting on the mandalorians bed, his head snuggled on the man's shoulder and obviously crying. 

Grogu's ears perked up as he noticed his master. He looked at him but then he looked back at his father's face, slowly stroking his arm. Luke took a seat beside the mandalorian bed and studied the sleeping man for a moment. He didn't know this guy, but he clearly felt he had a good heart being able to gain the love of such a pure creature. But then the Jedi felt Grogu's conflict, which he started to sense back in the cockpit. 

"Grogu, take my hand." Luke said softly and the child hesitantly reached his three fingered hand, leaving his other to rest on Din's shoulder. Even the short time of separation ignited some deep emotions in him. Luke took Grogu's hand and let his mind flow through the kid's thoughts, trying to understand the bond he shared with the mandalorian. 

But in the end, the Jedi understood. "He's like a father to you. He's the first person, who loves you unconditionally like his own child. I've never felt such a strong bond before Grogu….." Luke admitted and let his tiny go. His glance fell on Din, who's armor clad appearance might be threatening at first, but under the beskar, he was just a lonely man with a pure heart. 

The Jedi bent over him and put his hand on Din's arm. Although Din was not a force sensitive, he got a glimpse of the bond they shared. Luke actually felt himself tearing up by the fact of what Din had sacrificed for this kid. He was an orphan, lost almost all of his tribe members, he lost his ship, which was basically his home and he broke his creed, which he had dedicated his life to, just to lose the only living being, he called his family. His child. After a few minutes he let go and smiled at Grogu. "Grogu, I cannot train you with you being separated from him.


	5. Chapter 5

Grogu woke up early in the morning. Soft rays of light tickled his nose and he rubbed his tiny hands over his face. Yawning, he leaned back on Din’s stomach and closed his eyes again. The mandalorian was still fast asleep and the kid curled up to him with a smile on his face. But suddenly, the door opened and Luke went in. At first, he checked on the mandalorian to make sure he was okay. “Good morning, Grogu.” the Jedi whispered and bent down to face his new student. The kid blinked at him sleepily and let out a soft purr. “Nah, who wants to sleep in on their first day of training? Come on, get up, little one.” Luke chuckled and picked the little one up.

Grogu sighed, because he wanted to get back to sleep. He turned his head to Din, who was still far away from waking up. At least he didn’t look as pale as yesterday, but the child’s ears dropped as he watched him. Grogu cooed and stretched his arm to reach for him. “No, little one. Let him sleep, he’s not the one who wants to become a Jedi. And additionally, he still needs to rest. I’ll have Leia to check on him later, don’t worry, okay?” Luke said softly but with a strict hint. Grogu nodded and followed him out of the room. 

“Come, I’ll show you around.” Luke said and watched the little one waddling behind him. They walked around the temple, it was a big complex of many small rooms for training, sleeping, meditating, common rooms, a well stocked library and impressive architecture. It looked ancient yet new, the colors were decent and warm. The floor was made of dark wood or beige tatami mattes. The facade was open to view the dense forests and green meadows, which were surrounding the temple. The dark ceilings had a slight swing at their ends, contributing to the exotc architecture . 

This place was beautiful and calm, but still Grogu felt uncomfortable when he came to meet the other students. “Don’t be shy, no one is going to hurt you here.” Skywalker chuckled as the child lowered his head so much, he almost disappeared into the collar of his robe. “This is Grogu, he’ll join our academy from now on.” Luke introduced him to the other boys and girls. 

“Hello, Grogu.” they replied cheerfully and the kids ears perked up. The kids seemed to be friendly. The boy with brown hair, who was sent to get Leia bent down to him and shook his hand. “Hi, I’m Riley, nice to meet you, Grogu.” he said smiling. The little one dared to smile back but pulled his hand away as the hand-shake was over. “He’ll warm up, give him some time.” Luke said and patted Grogu on his back. “Master Skywalker, what happened to the injured man?” Riley asked and Luke put his hand on his shoulder. “This man is Grogu’s father. He was badly hurt and he’s going to stay here for a while.” he explained to the others. 

“Is he a Jedi?” a girl with black hair and a ponytail asked. “No, he’s a mandalorian and maybe, you guys can learn from him too.” Luke said and clapped his hands together. “Alright, let’s get breakfast and we meet outside on the meadow for the first lesson today.” The kid’s spread and took a seat around the tables. After they had breakfast, they gathered outside, every kid with a heavy rock in front of them. Luke taught them to lift their rocks and in the end, everyone managed to do that, even Grogu, who was quite hesitant at first. 

Leia entered Din’s room with a cup of reddish liquid in it. The mandalorian was still asleep and she put the cup on the nightstand. Carefully, she lifted his blanket to check his wounds, but there were only scars left. The woman sighed in relief. Suddenly, she heard a groan from the mandalorian and he slowly peeled his eyes open. His vision was blurred at first, but after a few seconds, he realized someone was sitting on his bed. 

“How are you feeling?” Leia asked and touched his arm. Din took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes. Still he felt very tired and worn out. “Better, thank you.” he mumbled and tried to push himself up. “No, lie down. You lost a lot of blood, you need to rest. Here…” she said and reached for the cup. The woman helped him drink the liquid and after he emptied the cup, he laid down again. Din felt even more sleepy now, almost numb but relaxed. “What kid of tea is that?” he asked and looked at her. “It’s a herbal tea, it helps you with your anemia and helps your body to heal and relax.” Leia explained with a soft smile. “What’s your name?” Din asked and sunk deeper into his pillow. “I’m General Leia Organa, sister of Luke Skywalker…..”she replied. “And you are Din Djarin, Leader of Clan Mudhorn and adoptive father of Grogu.” Leia added as if she would have known Din for a long time. 

“The kid’s a chatterbox…” Din chuckled weakly and closed his eyes again. “Yes, sleep and rest. You’ll be better in a few days if you drink your tea. I’ll be back with another cup in a few hours.” the woman said and got up again. She went to the cupboard on the other side of the room and pulled out some fresh clothes for Din, who has fallen asleep again. With a warm smile on her face, she put the clothes on his bed and left the room again. 

Grogu spent the rest of his day with some more training units and after dinner, he was so tired. But Luke kept him for a unit of individual training. They left the common room and went into a smaller, quiet room. “Sit Grogu, I want you to let your mind flow. I still sense some blockades in you. You need to free your mind.” Luke said and closed his eyes as well as the kid. Both connected and Luke visualized some of his memories. “I sense many fears in you…” the Jedi whispered and Grogu’s ears perked up. He had heard these words before. 

Luke frowned. “You’ve already met another Jedi?” he asked, surprised as he sensed Ahsoka in Grogu’s memories. But suddenly, the link broke and the kid groaned exhausted. “You met another Jedi on Corvus? I’ve never heard of her.” Skywalker asked the kid, but he was too tired to share just a bit of his mind. The Jedi smiled and picked him up.”Okay, that's enough for today, rest now.” he said softly and took him back to Din’s room. 

Din woke up in the evening, while the students had their dinner. He felt a little stronger and pushed himself up, but not without getting slightly dizzy. The mandalorian wondered where Grogu was and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He looked around and noticed the fresh clothes, which were laid out for him. Carefully, he got up and went to the bathroom. After he cleaned up a bit, he put the fresh clothes on. But soon he felt the effects of the blood loss and he felt so tired again. Slowly, he walked to the huge window at the other end of the room and sat down on the windowsill. 

The mandalorian took some deep breaths, leaned back on the window frame and watched the sun slowly disappearing behind the trees of the forest, the wind was softly brushing through the meadow. Din closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment of silence, this was really a very quiet, spiritual place, he thought. Suddenly, the door opened and Luke and Grogu stepped in. Mando turned to them with a smile on his face. “How are you feeling?” the Jedi asked and put another cup of tea down on the nightstand. 

“Better, thank you.” Din replied and looked at Grogu, who tiredly blinked back at him. “He was really hard-working today.” Luke smiled and gave him to Din. “I’m proud of you, little one.” the mandalorian said softly and let Grogu grab his finger. Mando smiled but suddenly, Luke cleared his throat. He reached for a dark metal hilt on his belt. “That’s yours, Din. I’ve been keeping it for you.” Skywalker said and reached him the Darksaber. Mando frowned, he still wanted to keep distance to this weapon. “This is a powerful weapon, which demands a strong hand and a strong mind….” Luke mumbled and Din looked at him, raising a brow. 

The Jedi sighed. "I can't train you to wield the force, Din Djarin. But I can train you wielding a Lightsaber. And although we're not the same kind we can learn from each other, old foes are becoming allies under the tent of friendship" Din’s jaw dropped by Luke's offer, but he instantly regained his composure again. Actually, he didn’t even think about it as he just replied “This is the way”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and Merry Christmas everyone. I took a little bit of a break and spent some time offline. But here's a little fluffy chapter I want to share with you. Enjoy 😊

With a smile on his face, Luke left them after he had placed Grogu on the bed. He yawned loudly and rubbed his tired eyes. Din took the cup of tea and sat beside him. "How was your first day?“ he asked but Grogu acted a little shy and hugged Din's arm." Nah, come on, these people here seem pretty nice and don't be afraid, I'm always here." the mandalorian said and rubbed the kids back. The child smiled but still clung to Mandos arm. 

Grogu was just exhausted, his eyelids literally dropping second by second. Din had never seen him like this before. After the mandalorian had finished his cup of tea, he decided it was time to go to sleep. The kid welcomed that and after Din had laid down, Grogu just collapsed on his father's chest. Mando pulled him closer, wrapping him in his blanket as the child promptly fell asleep. 

The night was silent in the Jedi Temple and the cold moonlight shone through the window. Din laid on his bed, cradling Grogu in the crook of his arm. Din pulled the blanket up to his chest, he was freezing a little since he just wore a light linen tunic, which was open in the front and some brown loose pants, what Leia had given to him. 

He wasn't used to wearing this kind of clothing after being jammed into beskar armor for many years. He listened to Grogu's soft little breaths and smiled. Right now he was the happiest man in the galaxy, holding his beloved child in his arms, realizing he never has to leave him now. Din took a deep breath and closed his eyes. 

"Uhh" Grogu just chirped and the mandalorian looked down into the Kid's huge eyes. "Sorry, did I wake you?“ Din whispered but the kid just lifted his arm and put his hand on Mandos stubbly cheek. The kid smiled at the contact." You like my face, huh?“ Din chuckled, tilted his head and placed a kiss on Grogu's head. The little one cooed happily and giggled because Din's stubble tickled him. 

Mando smiled widely, it seemed like Grogu was happy to be with him again too. Two days ago he was devastated by the thought of never seeing him again and it still hurt even thinking about it. It felt like something just ripped a hole into his chest which was slowly healing now. 

Suddenly Grogu moved closer, snuggling his head on Din's collar bone, his little hand gently resting on his chest. Din just picked his hand up and held it between his thumb and index finger, giving it a few tender strokes. Grogu instinctively curled his finger around it, giving a gentle reassuring squeeze. "Yeah, I'm never gonna leave you again either." Din whispered and lowered his hand again. 

Grogu closed his eyes and let out one of his little purrs, just enjoying Din's closeness and warmth. When he put his hand down on Din's chest again, he finally realized, there was no barrier between them anymore, no beskar, no helmet, just a human being with his adopted son. Mando pulled him closer, gently rubbing small circles on his back as he felt Grogu's little breaths on his skin. 

Din took another deep breath. "You mean more to me than you will ever know." he whispered and a single tear dropped from his eyes. Tilting his head slightly, the mandalorian snuggled his cheek on the Kid's fuzzy head, closing his eyes and falling into a deep peaceful slumber. 

They slept until morning, closely huddled together. Din was the first who awoke. He looked down and smiled by the sight of Grogu, who laid sprawled on the center of his chest, snoring like a full grown mudhorn. Din lifted his arm and scratched the kid gently behind his ears. "Good morning, Grogu. Time to get up, buddy." Din said softly. The Kid's ears twitched as he woke up. He let out a little purr and stretched his limbs. 

Din slowly got up, holding the kid close, so he won't slip. But Grogu wasn't a fan of getting up so early and snuggled back on Mando's chest."Hey, no matter if you want to become a Jedi or a Mandalorian, you need to be on time for training" Din said and took him to the bathroom. After they were ready, Grogu rather reluctantly, they joined the other students and Skywalker for breakfast. 

Din was very welcomed by the other kids, but still, Grogu was very shy and didn't leave his side. After they finished breakfast, Luke told them it was time for the first lesson of the day. But Grogu still clung to Mandos shirt. "Alright, pal. Time to join the others." Din said and placed the kid on the ground. Luke already waved at him to come, but the kid still hesitated. The mandalorian sighed, it seemed the kid was still suffering from the past days events. The thought of being separated from his father made him even more clingy and affectionate. 

"Grogu, it's time. Come on." Din said more sternly and patted him on his back. Grogu looked at him and lowered his ears. Slowly, he waddled to the others and the group made its way outside. Din watched them leaving and sighed. Deep in his heart he knew what the kid was feeling, because he felt it too. 

Luke said he wanted to wait until Din had fully recovered for his special training. So the mandalorian spent the next days strolling through the temple and he was amazed by its beauty. He also made long walks, exploring the surrounding forests while Grogu was in training. When he reached a glade in the woods, he sat down on a rock for a moment to recover. 

Din closed his eyes, listening to the sounds of nature. But there was more to sense around him. This place was genuinely spiritual even for not force sensitives. He enjoyed this moment of silence and reflected the past few days. The mandalorian realized he had never felt so calm and relaxed before. He had reached his inner peace as he realized his new quest was raising Grogu and help to become a Jedi. The kid was too attached to him to manage this task alone, Din acknowledged that. 

Din took another deep breath and shivered as cool wind brushed through his hair. He knew it was time to return to the temple, so he made his way back. He saw the kids were still training outside, lifting rocks with their minds. Din leaned on one of the pillars at the entrance hall and watched them. He crossed his arms over his chest, when it was Grogu's turn to lift the stones. 

But the kid struggled with his task and covered his ears in shame. Looking around, he noticed Din was standing there. Grogu took a deep breath, their eyes met and Djarin gave him an encouraging smile. The kid tried his best and finally made the stone floating in front of the group. The others applauded him and for the first time, Grogu laughed around the other kids. Din smiled too, "I'm so proud of you." he whispered, while a small tear dripped from his eye.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long for an update, but I've become a little lazy during the holidays. Anyways, I hope you're going to enjoy the new chapter.

Luke wrapped up the training for today and Grogu waddled to his father. “You did great, pal.” Din said cheerfully and picked him up. Suddenly, Skywalker was standing in front of them. “Looks like you're feeling better” he said and the mandalorian nodded. “Yes, almost back to normal.” Din replied and put Grogu back on the ground. “That’s great. Your training is going to start tomorrow morning. Come to the great hall and don’t forget your Darksaber.” Luke explained and went into the temple. 

Later, Din and Grogu were in their sleeping quarters. The mandalorian had no idea what to expect to be trained by a Jedi. He had trained wielding a sword and various other weapons when he was a kid. But this time, it felt different. Din sat on the bed and ran his fingers over the metal hilt. It felt heavy in his hands, but it was a comfortable weight. When he switched it on, he watched the glowing blade growing out of its hilt. It sounded different than the lightsabers he had seen before. 

Grogu watched it intensely and the gloomy glow frightened him, so he kept his distance. “It’s okay, kid. No one’s gonna hurt or scare you with that weapon ever again. I promise.” Din said and tried to soothe him. Cautiously, the child waddled beside him and Djarin held out the end of the hilt for him. “Come on, touch it, it won’t harm you.” he said and Grogu carefully put his tiny hand on it. He felt the power almost vibrating through the metal, but he was still sceptical. “A weapon is only dangerous if it’s in the hand of the wrong people. People harm you, not the weapon itself.” Din explained and Grogu looked up. 

The mandalorian sighed regardless. Now he had this powerful weapon, but he didn’t forget the price for it. He had almost lost his life because of it and if Bo-Katan wouldn’t be dead, she’d still be hunting him for it. For leading a dead planet. He had never considered himself to be a leader, he won the weapon in combat, but not for the Saber but to save his kid’s life. The kid noticed his expression became darker and worried, so he patted his thigh to snap him out of it. 

“You’re right, buddy. No use to think about such things here. Let’s go to sleep.” he said, switched the Darksaber off and put it on the nightstand. They fell asleep quickly and Din woke up early in the morning. Grogu was still sleeping, when he got up. The kid curled to his side and hugged the blanket in his sleep. Din smiled softly and kissed him on his forehead, before he got ready for his first lesson with Luke. 

The mandalorian quietly closed the door of their sleeping quarters and went to the great hall. It was ghostly silent, all of Luke's other students still seemed to be asleep. Soft rays of the sun found their way through the pillars inside and contributed to the beauty of the temple's interior. Din’s steps echoed in the hallway until he saw Luke standing on a podium, he held his lightsaber in his gloved hand. 

“Good morning, Din.” he said and turned around with a smile. He looked highly motivated, while Din was still half asleep. “Morning…” the mandalorian replied and ran his hand through his ruffled hair. “Alright, take a seat.” Luke said and gestured him to a Zabuton, which was placed right in front of the open facade. He sat down and crossed his legs, placing the Darksaber right in front of him. 

“Alright, let’s begin. First, we’re going to meditate. It’s important to clear your mind before a training or fight. So close your eyes and take some deep breaths.” Luke said and sat directly opposite. Din was a little bewildered, but he did what he was asked to. He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing. “That’s good, now listen to my voice. Meditating is not a jedi exclusive, you can do it too.” Luke said with a low voice.

“Okay…. I’ve never tried it before.” Din replied. “Don’t worry, I’ll guide you.” Skywalker said and cleared his throat. “Alright, try to clear your mind, get rid of all emotions and focus on your breathing. Get rid of all of your fears, all of your doubts and try to visualize the saber. The sword is only a sword until it becomes a weapon in your hand. The Jedi use their lightsabers to restore and keep the peace and balance, never to actively fight someone else.” Luke said, but Din chuckled quietly. 

The Jedi raised his brow. “That’s almost the same, I told Grogu yesterday. My father had told me that once and I…” Din explained and his glance fell on the floor. Now that he became a ‘father’ he often remembered his dad. A wave of sadness swept over him and he became quiet. “Don’t let your emotions take over you, try to keep your mind clear.” Luke said and the mandalorian frowned. “Are you reading my mind?” he asked, but Luke shook his head. “No, it doesn’t work the same as I can communicate with another force sensitive, but to some point, I can feel someone’s emotions. And that is the reason why it’s important to keep your mind clear in a fight. Hide your feelings or your opponent might use them against you.” Skywalker explained and Din nodded. So he went back to his meditation. 

After one hour, Luke concluded and they switched over to practice. Skywalker showed him some basics and let him repeat them until he was able to do it without instructions. In the meantime, Grogu got up and joined the other students for breakfast. Leia joined them and entertained the kids by reading a book for them. Grogu actually enjoyed being around the other but he still kept looking around for his father. It was late afternoon until they were finished. Din still hadn’t shown up and he became worried, so he decided to go and look for him. 

When Luke was convinced, Din was ready, they trained an actual fight. “Focus on your mind, Din. I can read you like an open book.” Luke chuckled as he attacked the Mandalorian, who was busy blocking his lightsaber. After a few hours, Din was panting, but he tried to hide his exhaustion from the Jedi. It appeared he had underestimated the hard physical training, but Luke pushed him beyond his limits. “That’s good. But you need to be more determined. Try to not only to block me, try to fight me back.” he said and helped Din up, after he had painfully hit the floor. 

But on the other hand, Skywalker had underestimated Din’s ambition, he really wanted to do this. Quickly, he got up and for the first time, he actually managed to fight the jedi back. Din smiled as Luke gave him an approving nod. Suddenly, the sliding door was opened and Grogu entered the hall. His eyes widened as he saw his father fighting his master. “Hey, kid.” Din called him, but due to this distraction, Luke attacked Din pretty hard, so he landed on his back. The jedi gasped as he felt something for a split-second. His glance fell on Grogu, who angrily looked at him. ‘Grogu, don’t’ Luke called him with his mind as he felt the kid was going to use his powers to protect Din from him. 

Din sat on the floor and was getting confused by their exchanges of stern glances. “It’s alright, Grogu. Come here.” the mandalorian said and waved at him. The sudden rise of Grogu’s anger vanished immediately and Luke was speechless for a moment. Now he understood why the other Jedi, he had met before, refused to train him. It was Din, who had the ability to instantly calm the kid.

He put on a smile again as he watched Din and Grogu, this is what he wished his father should have been for him. “Alright, enough for today. You did great. But you need to train to clear your mind, Din. And….. try to practice that with your son, he needs to learn that too.” Luke said and attached his lightsaber on his belt again.

After dinner, they went back to their sleeping quarters. Grogu was sitting on the bed, playing with his silver ball. The kid looked up but Din went straight to the bathroom. He heard the patterning of the shower and his attention fell back onto the silver metal knob in his tiny hands. 

Fifteen minutes later, Din came out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his hips. His wet hair left traces of drops on his back and chest. He looked tired. Groaning he sat down on the bed and let himself fall backwards. "Skywalker is gonna pay for that", he chuckled and rubbed his right shoulder, which hurt like hell. Although Din was in a good shape, he felt sore like never before. 

The mandalorian closed his eyes, just resting for a moment until he felt Grogu's tiny hands rubbing his sore shoulder and suddenly the pain vanished. Din looked up. "Did you just heal me?" he asked and turned to his side. But Grogu just gave him a cheeky grin, so he took it as a yes. "You tiny, cunning, womp rat." Din chuckled and tickled the kids belly. He kicked his little feet and laughed. 

Din bent over him and kissed the kids head. "Thank you, pal…" he whispered and Grogu wrapped his short arms around his father's neck. "Alright, let me change and go to bed then" the mandalorian said and put Grogu down on the bed. He went to the bathroom again to get dressed for the night and when he returned, Grogu was already lying underneath the blanket. 

They fell asleep quickly but Din woke up in the middle of the night." Grogu?“ he asked as the child turned from side to side. He looked distressed and anxious." Hey, what is it?“ Din asked a little more worried and put his hand on the Kid's belly, gently rubbing circles. 

After a while, Grogu seemed to snap out of his nightmare, he noticed Din's hand and grabbed his thumb, holding it tightly. "It's alright, you're safe, buddy." he said and the kid opened his eyes, slightly panting. “Grogu, what kind of conversation did you and Skywalker have today? He looked a little…. afraid.” Din asked and looked at his child. Grogu edged closer and pressed his forehead against Din’s. 

“You were worried about me?” Djarin asked and the kid nodded confirming. The mandalorian smiled and cuddled him. Din fell asleep again after a while, but Grogu suddenly heard voices from outside. Cautiously, he wiggled himself out of his father’s arms, went to the door and listened closely. 

“Luke, are you sure about this?” Leia asked with a worried tone in her voice. “Yes, I need to meet her. She has met Grogu before and refused to train him. Today I finally understood why. The kid’s attachment to his father is exceptionally strong and it can become a problem. You remember my concern about Ben? I feel the same fears in this kid. I need to talk to her, somehow, I think she may know more than I can see at the moment.” Luke explained and left the temple. “Be careful.” Leia said and vanished into the darkness. 

Grogu heard every word they said, suddenly he doubted if this was the right decision to become a Jedi. Back on Gideon’s ship, he had asked Din for permission because it was his wish to be trained in the force. But now, he feared that he might become dangerous to the others.


	8. Chapter 8

From a distance, Grogu heard Luke taking off with his X-Wing. His ears dropped. What would Ahsoka tell him? The kid didn’t want to stop the training now, but he also didn’t want to leave Din. But if he had to choose, he’d choose his father. With a sigh, Grogu returned to the bed, where Mando was still fast asleep. Curled to his side, the mandalorian had no idea of what Grogu was witnessing before. 

The kid watched him for a moment, he was sad and wanted to be comforted, but Din was asleep and he didn’t want to wake him up either. The little one was happy that Din finally had a healthy, normal sleeping pattern, not like he had back on the Razor Crest, when he sometimes was awake for days. So Grogu cautiously nuzzled his head on Din’s neck and pressed himself on his body. He found himself relaxing immediately. Grogu knew the mandalorian was his safe place and no one would harm him if he was with him. For now, his   
fears and worries were far away suddenly, but still, he struggled to fall asleep again. 

§

When Luke had cleared the atmosphere, he typed in the coordinates for Corvus. He had never been on this planet, so he had little doubts. R2 beeped not less worried. “I know R2, this all seems to be quite pointless. But I have to meet her, I have a feeling she might know more about Grogu, than I was able to see in the kid’s mind. And there’s something, I can’t explain either. I feel a connection to her, like she is an old friend.” Luke explained as he checked his controls. They made the jump into hyperspace, despite R2D2’s doubting babbling and arrived at Corvus after a few hours. 

§

When Din woke up the next morning, he thought, he had overslept. He felt something small breaths against his neck and noticed Grogu was literally hugging him. “Hey, Pal. Wake up.” he said and patted the kid’s back. But the child refused moving and clung even closer. Din sighed. “Come on, you lazy womp rat. I’m pretty sure everyone is already waiting for you.” But as a response, the kid just shook his head with a low ‘Uh-oh’. “What do you mean?” the mandalorian questioned and peeled the kid from his neck. 

Grogu wearly rubbed his eyes. Din studied him, he looked exhausted to him. “Grogu, are you okay?” he asked and the little one shrugged. The mandalorian sighed and hoped for the kid to learn how to talk soon. “Alright, we’ll see what Skywalker has to say. He can translate for me.” Djarin said and put the kid back on the bed, while he got up. But Grogu shook his head again. “He can’t? Why?” Din asked and knelt down to be on the same level with the kid’s face. Grogu just pointed outside the window, to the sky to be precise. “He’s gone?” Din realized and turned to the kid again, who nodded frantically.

Din sighed and thought for a moment, while Grogu let himself fall on the soft mattress again, pulling their blanket over his face. “Oh no, we’re not taking the day off. We should start with the meditation practice. You and me. Come on, let’s get ready.” the mandalorian decided and pulled the blanket from the kid, who sighed loudly. Half an hour later, they were ready to join the other younglings for breakfast, but as Grogu said, Luke wasn’t there. Din went to Leia, who was busy feeding her son Ben. 

“Luke left the temple for a meeting with another Jedi on Corvus.” the Princess explained as the mandalorian asked her about Skywalker’s whereabouts. “He’s visiting Ahsoka Tano?” Din asked, but Leia just shrugged. “He didn’t tell me the Jedi’s name and I don’t know when he’s returning. He just told me, to instruct the students to study for themselves or just to take the time to relax from the training.” she said and glanced at her son. The black haired toddler was blowing a raspberry and Leia patted his head. With a smile she turned to Din again. “What about you take the time off and spend it with your son? I’m pretty sure he'd love that. He actually told me a few days ago that he wanted to spend more time with you and he misses the times back at your old ship.” Leia suggested and squeezed Din’s arm briefly. 

The mandalorian nodded and returned to Grogu’s table, who was bolting down his breakfast. “Alright, pal. It seems we really have got a day off or so. What about when we go out for a little hike in the woods?” Din suggested and the kid was super excited, almost jumping from his seat. “Yeah, but can I have my breakfast in the first place?” Din chuckled and started eating. 

§

Ahsoka Tano was strolling through the market plaza. Since they had expelled the magistrate from the town, it has turned into a nice and lovely place, despite the gloomy surroundings. She loved watching the people, doing their daily business and even spent the guards on the town’s wall a visit. But suddenly, the Togruta looked up, when an unknown X-Wing flew over the town, to land somewhere in the woods. Ahsoka suddenly felt something, she hadn’t felt in a long time. 

When she had met Grogu and Din, she was able to sense the kid’s force sensitiveness. But this time, it was different. She knew another Jedi had landed on Corvus, but it felt much more familiar. Like an old friend, who returned after a long period of time. Luke landed on the same spot, where Din had parked the Razor Crest, when he and the kid were visiting ‘the nice Lady’. The Jedi jumped from the Cockpit and brushed off his cloak. The air was thick and smelled like burned wood. 

Behind him, R2D2 rolled over some branches, which cracked under its weight. “She’s close, let’s go.” Luke said, and pulled his hood over his head. The droid followed him closely, because he seemed to be a little ‘scared’. But suddenly, someone, whose face was covered with a hood, blocked their way. Luke noticed the two Lightsaber hilts in her hands.“Who are you, Jedi?” a female voice asked from underneath the black cloak. “I’m looking for Ahsoka Tano. My Name is Luke Skywalker.” 

§

Back at the Temple, Din and Grogu got ready for their hike. Din actually got some kind of bag, where he wanted to stuff the kid in, if his little legs would hurt from walking. Also, he attached the Darksaber and his blaster to his belt. The child looked at him and raised his brow. “Hey, it’s just for safety, you know in what kind of trouble we have already got into at this point.” the mandalorian explained and grabbed his back. “Alright, let’s go.”

They walked for two hours and enjoyed their time together. The forest seemed to be an endless ocean of trees, hills and even a few mountains. The air was cool and clear, but like the first time, when Din was strolling around solo, he felt the spiritually around this place. Grogu noticed it as well, it felt like his powers were stronger around here. After a while, they made a break to eat something. 

Din decided to sit down at some rocks by a nearby river. The mandalorian scooped some of the crystal clear water in his hands and spread it on his face. Grogu looked at him and dipped his finger into the cold water. “It’s alright, you can drink it, it’s safe.” Mando said and sat down on a rock beside his child. The little one scooped some water with his little cup, they had brought with and took a few sips. Din sighed. “Okay Grogu, listen. Skywalker told me to practice the meditation stuff with you. What a perfect place to try it here, don’t you think?” he said and the kid raised his brow. 

“Ok, just close your eyes and breathe. Clear your mind and get rid of all your emotions for now.” Djarin instructed the kid and closed his eyes. It seemed to work better for him now, than he tried before with Luke. Grogu mirrored him and closed his eyes too. But still, he struggled from last night's events, so he was not able to get rid of his fears completely. But since the mandalorian was not force sensitive, he couldn’t judge Grogu’s progress. 

After fifteen minutes, Din let out a sigh, he felt relaxed enough to do the next step. “Grogu, look at me. I need you to do something for me.” he said and the kid’s ears perked up. “I need you to try to invade my mind, so I can try blocking it. The last time, Skywalker was rooting around in my head and I want you to do the same, so I can learn. Can you do that for me?” Din kindly asked his child, who was very excited but sceptical. Master Luke had already taught them to use the force that way, so it would be the perfect practice for him too. But still he struggled about using his powers on his father. 

But nevertheless, the kid nodded so both shifted to face each other. Din took Grogu’s little hands between his fingers and held them. “Okay, kid. I’m ready….” the mandalorian said and closed his eyes. 

The child obliged his wish and started to enter his mind, while Din tried to withstand. It was hard at first, but gradually, the mandalorian figured out how it’s done. “Try harder, Grogu.” he said and he felt the kid’s grip on his fingers tightened. And indeed, it was way harder to keep Grogu outside from his mind. But Din really wanted to push himself and his kid beyond their limits. The kid’s hand now painfully squeezed his father’s digit and suddenly, Din groaned loudly. 

He let go of Grogu’s hands and pressed his palm on his temples. He just had the worst attack of migraine, he had ever had. Almost blacking out, he sucked in a few breaths. Grogu started to panic and rushed at his side. Frantically patting Din’s stomach, the kid cooed worriedly. Djarin couldn’t talk and lied down for a moment. The headache was slowly subsiding, but he felt sick. Quickly, Grogu grabbed the little cup and returned to him with some water. 

“Thanks kid….” Din breathed as he gulped it down. But Grogu started patting his shoulder in an apologetic manner. “You did nothing wrong, kid. I told you to do so. Don’t worry, I just underestimated your powers” Din explained and pulled his kid in a close hug. “You could never hurt me…..” the mandalorian whispered and placed a kiss on the child's fuzzy head.


	9. Chapter 9

Ahsoka’s jaw dropped when she heard Luke’s name. “S-Skywalker? Are…. Are you… his son?” the Togruta stammered and dropped her lightsaber hilts, actually, she never was a person who was lack of words, but this caught her so off guard. “My father was Anakin Skywalker, better known as Darth Vader. It’s true….” Luke confirmed and stepped closer. Ahsoka was like frozen and watched the other picking up her Sabers and giving them back to her. She hesitated.

Luke looked into her eyes and he felt something, like a connection to the past, like a connection to his father’s true self. “You know him, don’t you?” Skywalker asked, when she finally accepted her sabers back. “I-I do not just know him. He was my Master, my best friend…. he was like my brother” Ahsoka stammered and she felt herself tearing up. Anakin was her soft spot for so many years and it still hurt her like nothing else. “Come on, let’s talk…” Luke said warmly and put his hand on her shoulder. 

And there they talked, for hours. Ahsoka finally had regained her composure and told Luke her story and how she had become Anakin’s Padawan. Skywalker instantly had a connection to her. “This was so important to me. To meet you. When I saw you in Grogu’s mind I….” he narrated but the Togruta cut him off. “Did you say ‘Grogu’? she asked and raised her brow. “Why… Yes, I took him as my student, he lives at my Temple… along with his father.” Luke explained and was puzzled about her reaction. 

Ahsoka sighed and looked down at her hands. “Then you found a solution for that problem. I refused to train him, because he had such a strong bond to this mandalorian. This was way beyond a normal friendship, he is as his father. I couldn’t separate them, because I……” she said and looked up. Luke felt there was something more, than just the struggle to separate father and son. “You think, he could turn to the dark side, because you have feared his bond is too strong?” he asked, but Ahsoka shook her head. “No, I didn’t just have the concern about it. I saw it, I had a vision of his future. He turned to the dark side, so powerful, like your father was. And his father, he…. he couldn’t live with that loss and died shortly after he left. You can’t separate them, not when he’s still so young. The mandalorian is the first person in his life, who has ever loved him. If you would take him away, you’d break the kid’s heart and it’ll lead him down the path your father took after his mother had died” she explained, but Luke put his hand over hers. 

“Don’t worry, his father is with him at the temple and in fact, he’s kind of my student too. Din Djarin is the current owner of the Darksaber and I offered to train him wielding this weapon. I had the same feeling about Grogu, shortly after I took him with me, but things changed even before I was able to leave the cruiser where I picked him up.” Luke said and told her the story, why he took the mandalorian with him. The female Jedi was shocked about Bo-Katan's ambush and she felt so sorry for the mandalorian. “Seems you can’t look inside of a human being. Greed can do things with people…. I still can’t believe she did that.” Ahsoka whispered and clenched a fist. 

“That’s true, but I’ve seen it with my very own eyes. If I hadn’t taken Din with me, he would have died and Grogu’s fate would have been sealed.” Skywalker said and gave her an encouraging smile. “So, seems like you’re gonna need to protect the mandalorian at all costs, for the fate of your youngling?” she asked and smiled back. 

“Naah, I think he can take care of himself I think, but I’m doing my best.” Luke chuckled. They spent more and more hours talking and Skywalker had no idea that the empire threatened his Temple at that moment. 

§

Din rested for a moment after Grogu almost melted his brain. He leaned against a big rock, his eyes were closed. After Djarin had admonished the kid to stay away from the fast streaming river, the kid practiced levitating smaller stones, an ability he really had fun to play with. But suddenly, the child heard something. Something was approaching them, but he couldn’t tell what. Quickly, he dropped the stones and waddled to his father. “Dada!” the little one babbled and patted Din’s arm. 

“Just a few more minutes.” Din groaned and crossed his arms over his chest. But before Grogu was able to warn him again, a blaster shot hit right into the rock beside them. The mandalorian was instantly awake, although his mind was still a little fuzzy. He drew his blaster and aimed at the trees where the shot came from. Now, he heard some heavy steps coming closer and a pair of red, glowing eyes shone through the green thicket. Din felt his stomach twisting as the Dark Trooper stepped closer, still aiming at them. 

“Grogu, stay behind me!” Din ordered and started firing at the droid, but his shots only got deflected. “Damn it!” the mandalorian cursed and looked down, realizing, he still had the Darksaber on his belt. “Okay….. let’s do this.” he hissed and switched it on. The black, glowing blade rose from the hilt with a low hum. The Trooper fired some more shots, but Djarin blocked them with the saber. He was highly focused and his heart was hammering in his chest. He acknowledged he had no armor and no other weapons with him. 

Slowly, he approached the Trooper and blocked a few more shots. He was so distracted by it, that he missed that another droid just landed beside Grogu. The kid was squealing with fear and tried to defend himself with his powers, but obviously, he was too weak. “What do you want here? You can’t have the kid!” Din growled at the Dark Trooper, but no response. The droid leaped at the mandalorian, who dodged the attack. 

The droid tried to shoot him again, but this time, Din just cut off his arm. The Trooper stretched his other arm at the mandalorian, but he was faster. Quickly, he ducked underneath his grasp and rammed the Darksaber right into the Dark Trooper’s chest. Black fluid sprayed on him and the metal man dropped on his knees, the red light in his eyes flickering. 

Din was breathing heavily, but suddenly, he heard Grogu squeaking. When he turned around, his heart skipped some beats as he was forced to watch the kid struggling with another Dark Trooper. “Grogu!” Din screamed and sprinted at them but then, the Trooper targeted the mandalorian as a new enemy and tossed the kid into the raging river. For a second, Mando felt like blacking out as he saw Grogu was drawn under the water. 

Without any hesitation, he wanted to go after him, but the Dark Trooper blocked his way and managed to grab Din’s neck, slamming him to the ground. The mandalorian gasped in pain when his back hit the gravelly ground. The grip around his throat tightened and he was not able to breathe. But instinctively, he wielded his sword and thrusted it through the droid's face. Again, black liquid spilled over him and the Troopers limp body collapsed on him. As fast as he could he pushed the limp metal body away. 

And then he ran as fast as he could to the riverbank. Quickly, he attached the Darksaber on his belt again, took off his shirt and jumped right into the raging river. The water was so cold, that his lungs felt like they were being crushed. It was an almost paralyzing cold, but Din ignored every signal of his body now. He was on pure adrenaline. Frantically, he tried to keep his eyes open underwater. He couldn’t see anything at first and his eyes hurt from the freezing cold. Then he could only see some water plants waving with the river’s flow.. 

The more seconds passed the more desperation took over Din. He dived deeper and deeper. And then, when he was almost running out of air, he saw Grogu floating underneath him. His foot was jammed between a few rocks, his eyes closed, unmoving. Din’s brain went on autopilot, as fast as he could, he dived deeper and got rid of the stones on the kid’s foot. He grabbed him quickly before he would drift away. With his arms firmly wrapped around Grogu’s body, he swam to the surface and his lungs hurt when he finally drew in a breath. 

Din struggled to swim against the flow, but eventually he managed to get to the riverbank again. “Grogu, Grogu wake up!” he yelled and patted the kid’s cheek. But his pale face showed no sign of waking up. Panic rose inside Djarin’s chest and he bent over the little one, pressing his ear on his chest to check his vitals. The mandalorian held his breath, he was able to hear some weak heartbeats, but soon he realized Grogu was not breathing. Without hesitation, he gently tilted the kid’s head back and gave him some rescue breaths through his nose and mouth. “Grogu, don’t do that to me.” Din begged, when the first round was in vain. Tears started to form in his eyes and the mandalorian gave him some more breaths. Again nothing happened. 

The kid’s body was hypothermic and Din’s hands started to tremble. “Grogu, please….” the mandalorian cried. Hot tears mixed with the cool water on his skin. Again, he tried to make his kid breathe again, patting his little chest in the breaks. And finally after two minutes, the child drew in a breath and coughed up a bunch of water. Gently, Din patted his back when he rolled to his side to spit out all the water. The kid whimpered softly and Mando pulled him into a close embrace. “Im sorry. I’m so sorry….” the mandalorian cried and wrapped his arms around the shivering bundle. 

Quickly, Din got up and picked up his shirt, which he had taken off before and wrapped Grogu in it. “We need to get back fast.” Din said and felt the kid was pressing on his bare chest, trying to pick up any body heat he could get. “I’ve got you, pal.” Djarin said softly, but suddenly he heard a noise from above. When he looked up, he saw two more Dark Troopers heading towards the Temple. “They aren’t after the kid, they are scouts.” Din thought loudly and started running, because he knew there was no one there to defend the temple.


	10. Chapter 10

Din sprinted through the forest as fast as he could, but still keeping the shivering bundle close to his body to warm him. "Stay with me, kid. We're almost there." he panted and soon they reached the temple's estate. The mandalorian let out a relieved sigh and tried to calm his rapid heart beat. 

"Looks like, they're not here yet." he panted but seconds after, he heard the familiar heavy steps. "Oh no…." Din whispered and turned to his side. The two remaining Dark Troopers of a unit of four slowly walked toward the temple. Grogu lifted his head from Djarins chest and looked at him. The mandalorian took a few deep breaths and placed Grogu under the root of an old, huge tree beside him. "Stay here, I'm gonna take care of them, don't follow me, kid." Mando ordered but the little one cooed worriedly. 

"Don't worry about me, but I'm the only one who can fight them" he explained and detached the Saber from his belt. But suddenly Grogu grabbed his hand, pulling him back. "Grogu I have to do this…. I  
I love you, kid." Din whispered, bent over and placed a kiss on the child's head before he got up to face the Troopers. He was so nervous, because he had realized he was quite unarmed and literally half naked to face two heavily armored Droids. 

"Hey, tin cans!“ Din called them to draw their attention to him. Two pairs of red glowing eyes looked back at the mandalorian. Djarin took a deep breath and switched the Darksaber on. The two Droids slowly walked toward him as they realized Din was threatening them. His grip around the hilt tightened and he started running toward them. 

But when one of the Death Troopers tried to shoot at him, he deflected the shots with his sword, dropped on the soil and slid across the damp grass through the Droids legs, wielding the Saber to cut them off. With a loud thud, the Droids upper part fell onto the meadow. Heavily breathing, Din avoided the Troopers grasp, jumped on the Droids torso and stabbed his blade into its head. 

"One down…." he panted and threw a quick glance to the entrance door of the temple. Leia stood there, her hand was covering her mouth in shock. "Get inside, lock the door!“ he yelled at her, but suddenly he felt a hot pain on his arm. Din gasped and looked down, fortunately it was only a graze. But suddenly, he became aware of why the Trooper wasn't attacking him again. It was already dangerously close to the tree, where he had told Grogu to hide. 

The mandalorians heart skipped some beats, so he grabbed his blaster and started firing to draw the attention to him again. It didn't work so Din sprinted at it. Suddenly he saw a pair of green ears perking up from the bundle on the forest floor. "Get away from him!“ Djarin screamed and jumped at the Droid to slash it with the Darksaber, but suddenly, the Droid turned around and managed to grab him by his neck. 

Din groaned loudly when the Trooper slammed his body on the soil. The Saber slipped from his hands only inches away from him, covered by grass. The Droid continued squeezing Din's throat and the mandalorian felt he was getting dizzy. Desperately he tried to reach his saber, but the Trooper buried its iron fist into Din's bare stomach. He blacked out for two seconds as the pain shot through his body. 

Djarin's vision was blurred when he looked into the Dark Troopers face. His consciousness was slipping, but suddenly he felt the cold metal of the Darksaber's hilt on his fingertips. A picture of Grogu raising his hand popped up in his mind. "G-Grogu…." Din choked and he managed to grab the Saber. Quickly, he turned it on and beheaded the Droid, who was still strangulating him. It's head fell beside him and the black operating fluid squirted on his naked flesh. 

The Droid's hand was still tight around his throat but with his last strength he managed to pull it off. Din's throat felt completely crushed when he tried to draw in a breath. His head turned to his side and he saw two green feet rushing at him before he actually passed out for a few minutes. 

Cold, tiny hands were frantically patting his cheek when he regained consciousness again. "Grogu…." Din rasped and the kid chirped cheerfully when his father opened his eyes again. The kids bent over him, still wrapped in Din's shirt. The mandalorian instantly pushed his pain aside, when he realized his kid was still freezing. "Come, let's get you inside." he gasped and slowly got up. Din closed his eyes and shook his head briefly to get rid of the dizziness before he picked up the kid. As fast as his beaten body allowed him to, they entered the temple. 

Leia and the students were still hiding in the great hall and everyone sighed in relief when they saw Din and Grogu again. Leia rushed at them, putting her hand on Din's shoulder. "Are you okay?“ she asked and her glance fell in the shivering bundle in the mandalorians arms."I'm fine" Din lied "But he isn't, can you take a look at him?“ he pleaded and put the kid into her arms."Riley, get some blankets for Din, please." Leia asked the brown haired boy, who instantly went into the other room. 

Leia put Grogu on the table to take a look at the kid, while Din dropped into a chair nearby. Now, that his adrenaline rush wore off, he felt the exhaustion sweeping over him, but still he tried to ignore it. Riley returned and reached a blanket to Din, who's bare torso was covered with goosebumps. "Thanks, Riley" Din said, giving him a weak smile and a pat on the shoulder. From the distance, he watched the princess working on Grogu. 

The mandalorian allowed himself to lean back on the chair and close his eyes for a moment. "Din? Din, wake up" a soft voice called him and when he opened his eyes, Leia stood in front of him. "Here…" she said and reached him the sleeping child. When the mandalorian straightened himself to receive Grogu, the blanket slipped from his shoulders, revealing black and blue bruises on his body. "Wait…." Leia said and put the kid on a soft pillow beside them. Gently, she put her delicate fingers on his neck, where he had black marks from the strangulation. "I'm fine, how is he?“ Din asked and grabbed her fingers. 

"Din, he just needs to warm up properly again and his ankle is sprained but apart from that, he's fine. But your bruises don't look so good, let me take a look at them." she said and the mandalorian hesitantly let go of her hands. His glance fell on Grogu, who was sleeping soundly. He felt Leia's fingers gently grazing over his skin and suddenly the pain vanished, after she had used her power on him."Your neck looks fine again…." she stated but when her hands dropped on the blossoming, dark spot on his stomach, Din almost yelled in pain. "Shh, it's alright, you've got a bleeding here" she soothed him. 

Din gasped when she touched him again and he pressed the back of his head against the soft surface of the chairs back. But suddenly he felt the pain became more and more numb and the black spot on his belly faded. The mandalorian took a deep breath when she was finished and he finally picked up Grogu, cradling him close to his chest. "Rest, keep him warm and Din….. Thank you." Leia said when she got up. "Don't mention it, I just did what I had to do, protecting my son, friends and my home." Djarin mumbled and closed his eyes. 

He slept for an hour in the chair and when he awoke, Din felt his back started to hurt from his position. Slowly he got up, holding Grogu close, who was still sleeping soundly. But he still felt a little cold."Come, we're going to try something." Din mumbled and returned to their room. Gently, he placed the kid on the bed and went into the bathroom. He switched the tap on to fill the tub with hot water. Until it was still being filled, Din started to scrub the Droids black 'blood' from his body. 

It took awhile to get rid of it, leaving his skin was quite irritated and red after the intense scrubbing. The bathtub was ready when he was finished, so he went to pick up the kid. After he stripped off his clothes and the child's brown robe, he sat down in the hot water, carefully placing Grogu on his chest . The kid was still fast asleep and the mandalorian scooped some water with his hand to pour it over the little one's shivering body. 

After Grogu finally had warmed up, he peeled himself from Din's wet skin. The mandalorian had dozed off and the kid slipped into the hot water. He was amazed by the foam and started playing with it. Ten minutes later, Din woke up with some funny foam figures on his head and face. Din laughed and also placed a 'hat' of foam on the Kid's fuzzy head. They played until the foam was gone and Grogu jumped back on Din's belly, trying to hug him. 

After the mandalorian had leaned back on the tubs rim, he lifted the kid to face him directly. Big brown eyes were staring into his dark one's. The mandalorian let out a shaky sigh. "I was so scared to lose you today" he whispered and Grogu lifted his arm to stroke his cheek. A tear dropped from Din's eye, this felt so familiar right now, like back on Gideon's Cruiser when he said his goodbye. 

But this time Grogu leaned closer and hugged Din's face, placing a kiss on the mandalorians temple. "Love you, Dada…." were the child's first words.


	11. Chapter 11

Din’s jaw dropped. “What did you just say?” he asked, but Grogu continued to snuggle on his head. “Love you….” the kid chirped again and the tough mandalorian felt himself tearing up. He was so taken aback that he struggled to find the right words, so he just hugged him closer than he had ever done before. “I….. I love you too, kid. More than you will ever know, you don’t have any idea.” Din stammered, when he found his voice again. But suddenly, he heard Grogu yawning loudly. “Tired….” the kid mumbled and let go of his father’s neck. 

“Yeah, let’s go to sleep.” Djarin said and got up from the bathtub. After they were dried and dressed for the night, Mando put the little one to sleep beside him. “You’ll always be my little womp rat” he mumbled and switched off the lights. Exhausted from the fight, Din fell asleep within minutes, but Grogu struggled to fall asleep. A few hours later, he felt his head begin to pound and his throat was getting sore. “Mmmmh” the little one groaned and turned to Din, who had probably the deepest sleep in a long time. He was lying on his back, one hand resting on his stomach, the other on his chest. Grogu could tell that he only moved once to scratch his knee, but apart from that, Din didn’t move at all that night. 

The kid coughed a few times, but the mandalorian didn’t stir. The shivers came back and Grogu wrapped himself into his part of their blanket, but it wasn’t enough. “Dada….” the kid chirped and edged closer to Din. Carefully, not to wake him, he crawled into the crook of his arm, curling up into a tiny, shivering ball and eventually fell asleep after a few minutes. 

Din woke up before the sun had risen. He knew it was way too early to get up, but he suddenly noticed that tiny, little ball, who had curled up to his side. It was nothing special at first, because Grogu always cuddled up to him during the night, but Djarin noticed, his little body felt warmer than usual. “Grogu?” he whispered and turned to his side carefully. He slipped his hand underneath the kid's body to lie him down on the mattress again. Tenderly, Din stroked the child’s cheek with his thumb, instantly noticing the heat that was radiating from him. “Oh no…” Djarin whispered, but suddenly, the little one woke up. 

Glassy, huge, brown eyes looked back at him, rimmed with tears. “Dada, it hurts.” Grogu whimpered, his voice sounded even more tiny than it was. “You’ve caught a cold and a fever, haven’t you, buddy?” Din asked and the kid slowly nodded. “Cold….” the kid whispered as a chill went through his body. “Yes….. I’m here…” Din said softly and picked the kid up, cradling him as close to his chest as possible. “Try to sleep a bit, it’ll help.” the mandalorian whispered and slipped underneath their blanket again, wrapping his arms around Grogu to provide as much warmth as possible. The kid closed his eyes again and lowered his ears, when he found the most comfortable spot on Din’s right pectoral. 

“Better?” Djarin asked and Grogu started to grab hold on his shirt. “Mmmmmh.” the little one replied and sighed. It didn’t take too long before the kid’s breathing evened out and he fell into a deep slumber again. Din continued rubbing the kid’s feverish head until he also fell asleep again. A few hours later, Grogu’s fever was still the same, but now it was time for Din to get up. Carefully, he wrapped the kid in the blanket and let him sleep. After he had finished his business in the bathroom, he got dressed and left their sleeping quarter. While he was walking to the hall, where they all ate, he wondered if Luke had returned already. 

But when he opened the heavy doors, everyone in the room became silent. Many pairs of eyes were looking at him from their tables. Din felt a little uncomfortable and his glance fell on the big table on the other side of the room. Leia, her son Ben and Luke were standing there, also throwing undefinable glances at him. Suddenly, Luke spoke. “Students…. let’s get up and thank the man, who had defended our temple from the empire so bravely” Din held his breath as everyone got up from their chairs and started to aplaude. The mandalorian couldn’t resist a slight smile, he felt his heart was picking up pace. 

Suddenly, Luke stood right in front of him and pulled him into a close hug. “Thank you…. Thank you for saving my students, my sister, my nephew and my temple.” the Jedi whispered into Din’s shoulder. The mandalorian had no idea what to say because he was so overwhelmed by their gratitude, so he just patted Luke’s back. When he released him, Din finally found the courage to speak again. “Don’t mention it. I just did what I had to do.” Din said and Luke smiled at him. Leia and Ben joined them and the little one hugged the mandalorian’s calf. “Thank you, Master Din” he whispered. The mandalorian smiled widely, it looked the same, when Grogu would hug his leg.

“Come, let’s get you some breakfast. Is Grogu still asleep?” Luke asked, but Din stopped suddenly. “No, unfortunately he’s calling in sick. He’s caught a cold with fever, I wanted to get him some tea.” Mando explained and the Jedi put on a worried expression. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. You know what, go back to him and I will join you with some tea and some food later. We also need to talk, Din.” he said and Djarin nodded. “Thank you….” he replied and returned to their room. Grogu was awake and sitting on their bed, covered in a pile of blankets. His eyes looked still glassy and now, Din was able to see how pale the little one actually was. 

“Hey, pal. How are you feeling?” Din asked and sat down on the bed. Slowly, the kid crawled to him and rested his head on his thigh. “Cold, papa.” he whispered when he closed his eyes. “Don’t worry, Luke is getting us some tea and some meds for you. You’ll be fine in no time again.” Mando said and put his palm on the kid’s back. But Grogu’s head perked up and he raised his arms toward him. “Up… “ he chirped, so Din picked him from the bed and let him snuggle on his neck again. 

Suddenly, it knocked on the door. “Come in.” Din said and Lukr entered their room. He had a tray with tea and a few snacks on it, which she put on the nightstand. “How is our little patient?” the Jedi said softly and put her hand on the kid’s back. Grogu let out a low coo and closed his eyes again, resting his head against his father’s neck again. “He’ll be fine, he just needs to rest for a few days. “Yes, sleep is the best medicine, but he should try this tea, it’s perfect for a cold.” Skywalker said and gave Din the cup. Reluctantly, Grogu took a few sips and fell asleep again, so the mandalorian put him back on the bed and covered him with his blanket. Luke sighed. “I’m sorry, this all happened to you. It’s my job to keep the temple safe though….”

“Luke, these Droids were imperial Dark Troopers. I have no idea where they were coming from. Gideon is supposed to be in custody of the New Republic, but it seems the empire is never going to be completely gone.” Din said and looked into the Jedi’s worried face. “I know, they’re like filthy rats. Creeping from the darkest, dirtiest corners. But I can’t tell where the troopers came from. I’ve heard rumors of turmoils in the outer rim, whispers” Luke explained and looked at his boots. Din sighed, he had hoped so badly, that they finally would be out of reach from the empire here. He just wanted Grogu to grow up safely and he acknowledged that even under the supervision of a Jedi, he isn’t completely safe. The mandalorian didn’t even dare to think about what would have happened if he wasn’t there to protect the temple. “I was talking to Ahsoka Tano and it was, like meeting an old friend. She was the one and only Padawan of my father….” Luke started to tell and made a pause. “She told me about the doubts she had concerning Grogu’s training and honestly, he has moments of sensitivity for the dark side. Everytime he feels you are in danger, he falls into a worrying behaviour.” the Jedi explained and looked at Din, who held his breath.

Skywalker instantly felt Din’s tension when he told him about the trouble with his attachment to him. Deep in his heart, he always feared about being separated from his child again. His breathing became faster and more shallow, Din had no control over himself in that case. His fears still had a tight grip around his heart and it felt like being squeezed every time he even thought about it. “Calm down, Din. There’s nothing to worry about. Grogu will always be by your side, but my task is to ensure your safety too, to protect your kid from the dark side. As long as you are safe, he’s safe. Your lives are laced with each other, this is your destiny ” the Jedi explained and put a smile on his face. 

Din felt relieved again and his tension loosened. “But I can’t just wait here for the empire to regain its strength again. I’ve seen them operating in the hidden. I want to be able to ensure the safety of the temple and to hunt down the empire to get rid of them once and for all. But I can’t do that without a ship.” Djarin explained. Luke thought for a moment, but suddenly he had an idea. “I understand and I really appreciate your help. You know, my sister's husband, Han Solo, is going to pay us a visit tomorrow. Maybe he can help you find an appropriate ship for you.” he said and gave Din an encouraging pat on the shoulder.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long for an update, I hope you're going to enjoy the new chapter. 😄

After Luke left them, Grogu awoke from his short nap again. His eyes were still glassy and his cheeks flushed with a pink tint. He cooed at Din with the little bit, what was left of his voice. The mandalorian smiled softly, picked him up and cradled him to his chest. “It’s gonna be alright, pal. Just get some rest and you’ll feel better in a few days. Everyone is catching a cold from time to time” Djarin whispered, while he gently stroked the kid’s cheek with his thumb. 

Din tried to feed the kid with some bread at first, but the crust bothered Grogu’s hurting throat even more, so he refused to eat. Luckily, Luke had brought some warm porridge, which the little one was finally able to eat. After they had finished their lunch, Grogu felt a little stronger. “Wanna go out to catch some air?” Din asked and the child nodded. But before they left, the mandalorian wrapped him into a nice warm blanket and Grogu made himself comfortable in the crook of his arm. They went outside, the weather was clear and cool. Din noticed that the wrecks of the droids had been removed along with any traces of their fight. 

They made a short stroll around the forest until Din decided it’s getting too cold for the child to be outside. When they returned, they briefly watched Luke training with the other students outside. “Want….” Grogu cooed sadly and pointed at the other children. “Don’t worry. You’ll be able to train with them in no time again. But first, you need to get well again” Din explained and carried the kid into the temple again. First he wanted to go back to their sleeping quarters, but then he had an idea how to cheer Grogu up a little. 

When Luke had shown him around the temple the first time, he told him that there was a small library and that was an understatement. When They entered the room, there were lots of shelves, with a countless number of books in them. It was big and looked quite different from the rest of the temple. There also were some study tables, cozy wing chairs and some big pillows to sit on. Din had no idea which one to read first, but he decided to take one with many pictures and drawings in it. They took a seat in one of the wing chairs and made themselves comfortable. Grogu was sitting on his father’s lap, leaning on his stomach and was quite fond of all the pictures Din showed him in the book. 

“Look, one day, you’ll get one of these nice Laser Swords too.” the mandalorian explained and showed him a drawing in the book. Grogu chirped happily and smiled. They spent another two hours in the library until Din noticed it was getting dark outside and it was time to go to sleep. He closed the book and put it back on the shelf again and returned to the seat to pick up the tired kid again. So they made their way back to their room and while Din was taking a shower, Grogu fell asleep on the bed again. 

The night was calm at first but in the early morning hours, Grogu started to whimper and Din woke up again. “What is it, pal?” the mandalorian asked sleepy but he noticed that the kid started to grab his throat and whimpered again. “Hurt…” the child rasped and tears started to rim his eyes, but Din understood. He got up and went to their bathroom to grab a cup of cold water. “Here, swallow slowly. It’ll soothe your sore throat” he said and helped his kid drink a few little sips. At first, Grogu started to cry from the pain but soon, he noticed the cold water actually helped. 

“You are so brave…” Din whispered and gently rubbed his hand over the kid’s head, feeling his fever had increased a bit again. After Grogu emptied the cup he shivered a little. “Wait, let me check something.” the mandalorian said and gently felt the sides of the kid’s neck with his fingertips. “Seems like your lymph nodes are a little bit swollen. I need to talk to Leia if it’s not getting better tomorrow.” Djarin mumbled and the little one stretched his arms toward him as a signal to get picked up. 

“Okay, let’s try to get some sleep again.” Din yawned after he had put the sick child on his chest and slipped underneath the blanket again. Actually, they fell asleep soon after and did not wake until morning. When Din opened his eyes, he felt like being suffocated. Grogu had wrapped his arms around his neck, pushing his little head under his chin. The kid’s body still felt unusually warm, so it felt like he had a hot bottle lying on his chest and neck. Carefully, Djarin wiggled out of Grogu’s embrace and succeeded in not waking him up. But since he had an urgent call of nature, he couldn’t wait any longer. Quickly, Din darted into the bathroom and after he had finished his business, he returned with his toothbrush in his mouth. 

Fortunately, Grogu was still sleeping soundly and the mandalorian carefully checked on his fever. It hasn’t changed through the night, so he decided to talk to Leia later, when the kid was awake. And he did half an hour later. Din wrapped Grogu into his blanket again and went to the hall, where the others were having their breakfast. Luke waved at them, when they entered, but suddenly Djarin noticed that there were two other guys with them on the table. One of them was a tall, brown haired wookie and the other one was a guy with light brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a brown, old leather jacket and played with Ben, who was sitting on his lap. 

Luke got up to greet them. “Good morning, may I introduce you. This is Han Solo, husband of my sister and his Co-Pilot Chewbacca or Chewy.” Solo nodded only, but he didn’t say anything, because he was too distracted by his son. “And Han, this is Din Djarin, Mandalorian and Leader of Clan Mudhorn with his little son Grogu, who’s my youngest student” Luke continued, but suddenly Han got up. “A mandalorian?” he asked and eyed Din with a sceptical glance. Mando raised his brow. But suddenly, Solo laughed and patted him on the back. “As long as you aren’t the other guy, who froze me in carbonite, we will get along” he chuckled and his attention turned to Grogu, who watched them with glassy eyes. “Who’s this little guy?” Han asked and poked the kid with his finger, but Din instinctively turned away. 

“He’s sick and he’s running a fever. I don’t think…..” Din said with a slight threatening tone in his voice, but he was cut off by Leia. “Han, this is a little child, you are scaring him.” she stated and got up too. Din was relieved that he didn’t have to be the one to admonish this guy, who he thought would be helping the mandalorian to get a new ship. “Sorry….” Han said and raised his arms and backed up. “Sorry…” Din mumbled and turned to Leia, to show her Grogu. Gently, she put her delicate hand on the kid’s forehead, eliciting a low moan from the little one. “Poor, little guy. I’m going to get you some medicine. I’ll be right back” she said softly and left the table. “Come on, take a seat. I think you guys need to talk.” Luke said and pointed at an empty chair on his side. 

Din sat down, putting Grogu on his lap, who intimidatingly looked at Chewbacca. But the wookie slowly raised his arm and gently started to scratch the kid behind his ears and Grogu was keen and let out some purrs. Djarin smiled when he saw Grogu relaxing and Han chuckled again. “I never thought the big, hairy guy would be more gentle with kids than I would” he said and took a sip from his cup. “So, Luke told me you need a new ship?” Han asked and Din looked up. “Yes…” the mandalorian mumbled, still keeping an eye on Grogu. “Well, I know someone who might help you with that and I’m pretty sure he'll make a good offer for you. We’re leaving after breakfast, if you want to come with us.” Han said and Din nodded. “Where are we going to meet your friend?” Mando asked. 

“Bespin. Lando should be back on Bespin” Han replied and looked up as Leia returned to their table with a spoon and a little brown bottle. “Here, little one.” she said and poured some of the thic, brownish liquid on the spoon. Grogu turned his face away, when his nose catched the smell of the spoon's content. “No, Grogu. You must take it, it’s just medicine” Din said and after a quick exchange of glances, the kid reluctantly swallowed it. Din proudly patted him on the back, but Leia threw a sceptical look at him. “He needs to take it three times a day until he gets better. It's best you leave him here with us when you fly to Bespin” Leia said and Djarin gave her an approving nod. But suddenly, Grogu started to panic, when he realized that he couldn’t go with his father on this trip. 

“Easy, pal. I’m gonna be back as soon as possible” Din said and tried to reassure him. But Grogu was getting more and more upset, clutching on his father’s shirt. Suddenly, Chewy let out a groan and the kid was silent in a second. The wookie gently patted his head and Grogu calmed down again. Din sighed and reached the kid over to Chewbacca, who cradled him in his long arms. Grogu’s ears perked up and he nuzzled himself into Chewie's long, soft fur. “You really can get along with kids.” Han chuckled and turned to the mandalorian again. “Okay, finish your breakfast and I’ll meet you at the entrance in 20 minutes” he said and got up from his chair, giving his son an affectionate pat on his head. 

After Din had eaten, he got up too, but Grogu instantly noticed that his father was leaving. “Papa!” he chirped and tried to wiggle out of Chewbacca's grasp. “Hey, I’ll be back in no time, I promise. And you promise me to get well soon.” Din said softly, bent over and kissed the child on his head “Go, I’ll take care of him” Leia said and looked at the mandalorian. Quickly, he returned to their room and opened their closet, which was hidden behind a sliding door. Shiny, silver beskar shimmered at him. The mandalorian took a deep breath, he hadn’t worn his armor since he got here. But he didn’t want to leave the planet without it, so he put it on the first time in weeks again. When he was dressed, he felt so much heavier, but complete again. At last, he picked up his helmet from the bed and looked at it for a few minutes. “Can I even put it on again?” he asked himself in his thoughts and some flashbacks of Grogu’s goodbye popped up in his mind again. Still, this particular memory made him tear up and tightened his chest. 

But then, he let out a sigh and just put it on again. “I know who I am” he mumbled and checked his blaster in his holster and attached the darksaber on his belt. Never before, he had felt so much complete, now, that he had decided to go his own way as a father and as a mandalorian. When everything was set in place, he went to the entrance where Solo was already waiting for him. “Damn, your armor is an eyecatcher.” Han commented as Din walked toward him. “The only mandalorian I’ve met was a bounty hunter with a pretty rough and scrabbed green armor. He fell into a Sarlacc Pit, when Luke had rescued Leia and me from Jabba the Hut. I think his name was Fett.” Solo narrated and Din looked up. “Fett? Boba Fett?” he asked and Han gave him a nod. “Yes, do you know this guy? I thought he had died back on Tatooine.” 

“Yes, I know him. He was an ally when we rescued the child from the empire and he saved me from Tython. I’d be still stuck on this planet without him.” Din explained while he followed Solo through the woods. “Well, it seems like being half digested by a Sarlacc makes you a good person… So here we are…” Han said and Din’s jaw dropped for a second when he suddenly stood in front of the Millenium Falcon.


End file.
